Eagles Workout QB Prospect Jake Locker

Some say that University of Washington quarterback Jack Locker would have been a top ten pick if he had come out last year. Others say there’s no way he would have gone in the first half of the draft.

After a lackluster 2010 season, nobody knows when Locker is going to be drafted this time around and that’s probably why the Eagles worked him out yesterday. He could go in the first or the second round. Some scouts are very high on him, while others think he’s a major risk because of his inability to make the decisions and throws from the pocket.

Aaron Wilson of the National Football Post reports that the Eagles worked out Locker yesterday. I think that it’s very unlikely that the Birds will draft him, especially if he goes in the first or second round, but the fact that there’s still a remote possibility that he could still be there in the third, is reason enough for the Eagles to work him out.

The young quarterback is a tremendous athlete with good size at 6’3″ and 235 pounds. He’s built like a rock and he can run. Locker ran a 4.59 in the forty-yard dash at the NFL Combine and was still somewhat disappointed. He jumped 35 inches in the vertical jump broad jumped 9’7″.

If you check out some of his video highlights you will see him leave the pocket and make plays. When he stays in the pocket, he doesn’t look like an NFL quarterback. He looks uncomfortable, erratic and stressed. In his college highlights, once he gets outside of the pocket, he seemed to see the field better and do a much better job of making decisions.

This is troubling and the reason that he’s somewhat of a project. He may be fast for a quarterback, but he will get run down by NFL linebackers and defensive backs once he leaves the pocket in the Pros. Locker won’t be able to break contain and make guys miss in the NFL like he did in the college. He’ll be forced to stay in the pocket and make plays from there.

The young man performed well at his Pro Day by completing 38 of 40 passes. Personally I don’t think Locker is an Eagles kind of quarterback because he’s a slow decision-maker and his accuracy is terrible. He’s best when he’s rolling out and throwing the ball on the move. He’s got a strong arm but the short passing attack isn’t the strength of his game at the moment.

I think you can do too much weightlifting as a quarterback and I wonder if Locker needs to do more stretching and less lifting to improve his throwing stroke.

He would benefit greatly from being drafted to a place like Philly because he wouldn’t have to play right away and he needs to get his fundamentals straightened out. He can make the great play, but he can’t make the simple play, like throwing the out route from the pocket and making sure he leads the receiver outside, so the ball doesn’t get picked off.

He was doing something right at Washington because he threw for a total of 7,639 yards and 53 touchdown passes.

Former NFL Player Personnel Director Mike Lombardi, who is a analyst for the NFL Network, didnt’ give a glowing report of Locker.

“At the end of the day for me, I think when you watch Jake Locker, he’s a potential starter in the NFL,” Lombardi said. “That’s the most you can say at this point in his career. He’s a potential starter.”

Lombardi said that Locker is a third or fourth round type of prospect. I think he’ll go sooner, but any team which decides to draft him, they had better

If the eagles trade kolb I can see them drafting him in the 2nd round. He is everything reid likes. he can run and has a good arm. Had a bad year in 2010 but his toughness to comeback from an injury like that means a lot in the NFL

A good kid and natural leader type who did not have much help there at U of Wash his Senior Season and especially his O/L which was very young and inexpereinced.. Locker has a strong arm who kinds of reminds me of a
“Joe Flacco/Chad Henne” type and will need to get with the right team and get good Coaching to have an effective NFL Career..
I don’t see the Eagles drafting a QB, unless they are able to trade Kolb which doesn’t look like that’s going to be allowed during/prior to Draft Time, but if they are able to move Kolb, then I would see them pusuing a more
athletic,mobile type of QB like a C Kapernick/T Taylor since they have a pocket passer already in Kafka

Heath Shuler from Tennessee and is a Politican now in NC..
I tell you, the more I study and look at this entire Draft, the weaker it really becomes.. I bet some teams (the smart ones anyways) will look to trade
4th/5th/6th Rd selections for picks in 2012..
Usually, you can get a round higher the following year
For example, trading a 2011 5th Rd pick may get you a 2012 4th Rd pick in return…

If the Eagles picked any QB in 2nd rd, I’d be outraged… take care of CB, a starting O lineman (like guard), and a LB or some big, talented DT with lots of upside. Get a project QB 4th or later unless some absolute NFL-type “steal” falls into your lap in the 3rd.

Igges this is a guy who was projected to go first over all in the draft last year. Michael Vick is NOT your long term solution neither is Mike Kafka. Eagles should want to bring in a guy like Jake and groom him for the next 3 years and see what he becomes. I think he can be a very good QB.

think its a good move giving him a look. by giving him a workout they can probably see what they have in kafka. its possible they think more of kafka than they do locker. but by bringing him in your putting feelers to other teams that have interest for possible trade options. if kolb can not be traded before the draft its gonna put a hurting on us.

Locker and mallet are the only 2 guys that ran pro style offenses in college. Locker – great athlete, arm and attitide, but accuracy and decision problems.
Mallet – big arm, but drug, accuracy and work ethic issues.

The other top quarterbacks don’t even have the correct footwork to properly run a pro offense, despite the high picks that will be used on these quarterbacks. This is why Kolb’s value is so high. Andy Reid actually started him and that carries more weight outside of Philly than in. There is such a demand for quarterbacks that can step in and run an offense today. Kolb is worth any pick in the first round from another teams point of view.

Jott – really? Haven’t you learned anything from previous drafts? Like, predictions made about it weeks prior usually turn out to be pretty off? And, a bunch of good players end up coming from late round picks?

third round….? Really??? Heres whats probably going to happen. Newton will go number one, Gabbert will go to the redskins, which will send teams that have qb needs in a panic and someone will jump on Locker. That team maybe the eagles. Mallett gives off a bad impression which immediately impacts Lockers value. He’s got a good arm, good release, and good athleticism. The birds are proven to be able to mold a qb. Vick is 31 and we all know how the bird feel about players ages 33-34. The point of the draft is to get the best available player for the future and they can mold locker into something special in 2 yrs.